Sibling Bonding
by Mysteria
Summary: Ep Tag - Truth & Consequences. Tim & Sarah talk after his return. Oneshot.


Disclaimer: I don't own anyone.

Spoilers: Truth & Consequences

Just a little piece I thought of while watching the above mentioned episode, one of my favorites of the series. I like writing Tim/Sarah; they barely show her and hardly mention her even though it's made clear she's local, even staying at his place from time to time so I figured she would have had some kind of thought about his mission.

Sibling Bonding

Timothy McGee was an object of pain and filth at the moment, and was also a being of no energy. The simple task of driving home and walking to his apartment seemed very similar to the pain associated with his beating in Somalia. Though he could not complain, the mission went better than anyone anticipated, their only goal had been to get vengeance for Ziva, so returning with her very much alive despite their own disbeliefs was a plus. Truth be told when Tony had told him he'd volunteered the both of them for the mission, he was upset and not because he didn't want justice for Ziva, because he did, but the thought of doing what the mission required, now that had terrified him to no end. The sensible part of him anyway; because part of him had been okay with going because in actuality the mission seemed like a suicide run. Ziva was the third person they'd lost so that part of him wasn't terrified at all at the possibly of not returning, it would only seem fair with the way that the others had been taken. Though that was then and this is now, he was dumbfounded that he was alive, dumbfounded that Ziva was alive, dumbfounded that they all made it back to American soil but most of all dumbfounded that it was taking him so long to lift his arm to the doorknob of his apartment. Finally getting another burst of energy he turned the knob and pushed the door open, slowly staggering into the apartment. He heard someone moving around and groaned, he definitely did not have enough energy for anyone let alone her.

"Tim! Oh my god, what happened to you?" Sarah McGee ran up to him and threw her arms around him. He cried out in pain.

"Sarah, Sarah, not so hard, or much, in pain." He gasped out. She back off quickly with a worried look.

"Your hurt, you shouldn't be here, you should be in a hospital."

"No, no, I'm alright, really, I got looked at, I'm just banged up." She ran a finger on the side of his face and he cringed.

"Tim, where were you? Your tan, it looks weird…" She smacked his arm and he yelped. "You sent me an email. An email Tim! I won't be around for a few days, work stuff, and take care. What the hell is that? Seriously, what the hell?" She looked at him, her eyes welling up. "That email alone made me think I was never going to see you again, and now you show up like this." She threw her arms back around him.

"Sarah, I'm alright, really. I'm sorry I didn't tell you something more."

"What happened?"

"Sarah, I'm exhausted."

"No Tim, I wanna know."

"Fine, we'll talk but I need to shower first, do you mind?" She eyed him up.

"Can you even do that, you look like your going to fall over."

"I got it, I'm filthy, I'll feel better." He smiled slightly and staggered off to the bathroom, she followed after him but the door closed in her face. She listen to him thump around before eventually hearing him cry out.

"Tim!"

"I'm fine, fine. Go away." He yelled out through the door, though in a lower voice mumbled, "Apparently I forgot how to walk." She shook her head with a frown and plopped down onto the bed while grabbing the remote to the TV. About thirty minutes later Tim's head poked out of the bathroom. "Get lost for a minute."

"Tim, I've seen all your stupid parts before."

"I don't care, get out."

"Whatever." She mumbled and exited the room. He dug through the drawers and got out a pair of boxers and tee shirt, the boxers were no problem, the tee shirt however was presenting an issue. He just didn't have the energy left in him to pull it over his head. With a groan of regret he yelled out.

"Sarah! Get in here." She came back into the room and gasped.

"Tim your all bruised."

"Yeah, it happens sometimes, help me get my shirt on." She sighed and grabbed the shirt, he put his arms out so she could pull it onto them and then she yanked it over his head, he let out a small yelp and fell back onto the bed. "Damn." He muttered and dragged himself to a sitting position. "You remember the female agent I work with Ziva?"

"Yeah, the foreign girl, I thought you said she had died."

"Oh, I wasn't sure if I told you that, but yeah her. Anyway me and Tony, we, we had to go on a mission to Somalia to take out this guy Saleem who was in part responsible for her death."

"So it was like a revenge thing? He killed your friend so you kill him. I can see the logic but why would that take days though?"

"Well there's travel time, and then well we had to be captured."

"You were captured by terrorist basically?" He shifted slightly. "Tim, did you even think you were going to make it back?" He stayed quiet. "Tim!"

"Sarah, my job is dangerous, every day that I go work I could die, hell I could die just walking out to my car."

"Way to avoid what I just said Timmy."

"I'm not, I just don't know what you want to hear, no matter what I say your still going to be upset."

"Well yeah Tim, you just admitted you know there was a chance of you not returning, so that's like saying your ready to die, so yes, that is upsetting." He didn't respond. "Tim?"

"Oh, sorry, it's just while we were there Ziva said she was ready to die and"

"Wait, Ziva?"

"Oh right, we, we found out she wasn't dead, she's not, we brought her home." He had a small smile on his face when he was done talking; she smiled and hugged him yet again.

"So you found her?"

"No, she apparently had been held by the bastard went after, he brought her to us, and that's when I finally started to think that our insane plan was actually going to work." He shifted so he was laying down. "Then the bastard almost blew off my head." She went to open her mouth. "Tony did what he does best though then, started talking trash. We were home free after that."

"She must be happy to be out of there."

"Yeah, I would assume so."

"Tim?"

"I'm sorry Sarah; it's been a really long couple of days."

"I get that but do you remember how you were the night you told you guys found out she had died?"

"No, not really."

"Yeah well big bro your like me with the liquor, drink too much and forget everything. You were upset, very, you should be happy now." He smiled at her.

"I am, I didn't expect things to go the way they did and even though I feel like something ran me over it was worth it. I'm just tired."

"Tim?"

"Hmm?" He tugged at the comforter yanking it over his legs.

"If you ever go on something like this again, and even though I will yell and cry, say goodbye before you go."

"Sarah."

"No Tim, promise me, because if you didn't come back this time I would have been even more devastated because I didn't say goodbye before you left."

"Okay, okay."

"Seriously, I mean it; do you know what the last thing I said to you before you left this time?"

"No."

"I called you a stupid loser because you stole my donut." Tim rolled his eyes slightly.

"Come here." He painfully lifted up his arm and put it around her. "I'm sorry; I promise if I ever have a mission like this again I will say something corny to please you."

"Tim!"

"Course you could always just stop naming calling and then you won't feel bad."

"Your funny." She sighed before continuing. "It's just, you're my brother, and I love you and it would kinda suck if you weren't around anymore." She waited. "Tim?" She glanced over; his mouth was hanging slightly open. "Figures you'd fall asleep when I say something nice." She mumbled and pulled the comforter up the rest of the way.

"Love you too." Was the quietly mumbled response she got as he dug himself deeper into the bed, she grabbed the remote and turned off the TV before curling up against him.


End file.
